Spanish Bank Giving Away Free Citroen With New Account

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Open a saving account with Spanish bank Banesto and they’ll give you a brand new, all-expenses-paid car. To qualify for a vehicle, a customer needs to lock between $26,400 and $235,000 into an account for at least 24 months, with the type of vehicle offered depending on how much one invests. For $235,000 and 36 months, you receive a Citroen C4 diesel, $175,000 a Citroen C3 and $145,000 a C2. Of course, there’s a catch. Bank customers opting for the cars do so in lieu of interest. So you’re locking up to $235,000 away for three years with no growth. We’re also presuming the cars are leased, and need to be returned at the end of the two- or three-year period. So we’re not actually sure if this is a good deal. Let’s assume you can earn 3.5% interest a year on your money. On $235,000, that’s $685 a month. A C4 diesel can be leased from $300-400 a month, we’ll assume another $200 for insurance, which still brings us in a little under that $685. Of course, the bank is probably getting some kind of bulk discount and doing the financing itself, so won’t be paying interest on its own vehicle loan. In other words, Banesto is making a healthy profit by offering cars instead of interest. Don’t have $235,000 to invest? Piaggio scooters are available to customers stashing away fewer Euros. [via Money.co.uk]